Costumes made/modeled by Yaya between 1999 - now.

Mouling Rouge Style Snow White

Why I chose to make this costume:

My friends and I made matching costumes for a Moulin Rouge style Disney group at Dragoncon, after seeing the amazing couture fashion type illustrations by artist MADHANZ! We thought that the designs were so innovative, classy and beautiful that we pulled together a 7 person group with fully made from scratch costumes in 1 month. It was really incredible how hard everyone worked on their costumes.

How I made this costume:

I followed the Madhanz design closely and chose various luxurious fabrics such as velvet, silk, satin and silk taffeta for the project. All the major pieces are made from scratch, from the bodice, skirt, sleeves to the hat, collar and butt flounce. I embellished the corset with stitched on ribbons, Swarovski crystals and fancy trims. The skirt is a triple circle skirt made with a rosette patterned satin, with horse hair braid installed all the way around. I have to wear 3 petticoats to achieve the proper floof. The collar was made from Wonderflex and covered in fabrics and trims, and the sleeves are stuffed for extra poof. I made patterns for all the pieces, including the hat, which is made out of Worbla. I purchased the thigh highs (hard to find maroon!), shoes and gloves (but embellished them), and my wig was sponsored by Arda Wigs.
My Snow White work in progress can be seen on Instagram.

Thoughts on this costume:

It was so funny - as soon as we posted photos of this group, there was an internet uproar over 2 issues - one, that Blikku and I were the "inacurate ethnicities" for our characters, and two, that we sexualized/disgraced classic Disney characters. I don't really care what is said about me or my costumes, but when there is unfounded criticism based only on small-minded thoughts, I like to set the record straight and be a positive influence on others.
As for why I chose Snow White even though I'm Chinese and ethnically more suited for Mulan... well I have cosplayed Mulan already. I made a Mulan costume in 2006 and have worn it maaaaany times since. I really LOVED this Snow White design, and wanted to make it. It's that simple. Cosplay for me is about wanting to make something, and then making it lol. Skin tone and ethnicity don't affect how I choose my costumes... and they should not affect you and your cosplaying either.

As for Moulin Rouge style Princesses being "slutty" - come on. Did you see the designs? They are highly fashionable and classy, with lots of detailing and design elements, evoking old world glamour and glitz. To me, these Moulin Rouge designs are some of the coolest Disney translations I have ever seen. There have been a million different twists on Disney characters, from Hipster to Historical to Steampunk. I absolutely adore this Moulin Rouge twist on the characters.
The accessibility of the internet has made sex appeal a bit diluted these days. There is a HUGE different between the glamour of pin up ala Dita Von Teese and her crystal covered Burlesque outfits, and sexy Halloween costumes from Leg Avenue. Both are supposed to be sexy, but are on different ends of sexy. Everything in perspective!

I absolutely adored this group and thank my awesome friends for cosplaying these characters with me!

About Yaya

Yaya Han® is one of only few cosplayers in the world to build a business in this hobby-ist community, but even after a decade of success, she strives to stay true to what got her into this field originally - fun and creativity. To this day, Yaya has made a myriad of costumes in the genres of anime, manga, video games, sci-fi, comic books and of course from her own original designs. Her intricate and lavish creations have won awards and acclaim worldwide, and she has been invited to appear as a Guest, Panelist, Judge, Performer and Host to hundreds conventions and other events all over the globe.